for setting the priorities for next year's budget approved this December. Here
is some background and an update of our work going into next year. This is part
of Park Superintendent Jayne Miller's report to the board at our last board
meeting.
Thanks,
Scott Vreeland
MPRB Commissioner
Here is a report on:
What the Park Board has accomplished and just as importantly, where it plans to
go from here. Key areas include its shift to data-driven decision making,
equity in service delivery and its workforce, park policing and the
environment. The Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board exists to provide places
and recreation opportunities for ALL people to gather, celebrate, contemplate,
and engage in activities that promote health, well-being, community, and the
environment. This statement taken directly from the MPRB mission drives the
many programs, initiatives and activities it engages in. In order to fulfill
its mission, the MPRB has taken steps to become more metrics driven. Beginning
in 2011, it began finding new and better ways to capture and track the
information necessary to be a better organization. This included everything
from fleet lifecycles to workforce planning to how programs and initiatives get
funded and who the organization is serving. To accomplish this, a
cross-functional team of Park Board employees began developing organizational
performance measures to enhance accountability and transparency as well as
drive ongoing improvement efforts.
Workforce Diversity
The MPRB also took a hard look at its workforce and began, in 2011, with the
important process of making sure the workforce better reflects the communities
it serves. Workforce diversity training accompanied the initiative so that
employees had the tools necessary to ensure an inclusive environment. These
efforts have resulted in increased diversity across six of eight EEO4 job
categories including Officials and Administration, Technicians, Protected
Service Workers, Paraprofessionals, Administrative Support, and Service
Maintenance Workers. The overall increase in workforce diversity went up by 5%
between 2011 and 2016, even with a hiring freeze in 2011 and 2012, bringing
current workforce numbers to 25% of the current appointed and full-time
certified employees. This compares favorably to the City of Minneapolis’ data
showing the percentage of people of color in Minneapolis in the workforce at
23%. Understanding that this is an ongoing process, the MPRB is finding
creative ways to bake inclusion into its very DNA.
Equitable Funding
A key part of the MPRB’s equity work revolves around equitable funding
practices. With the Superintendent’s Recommended 2018 Budget, the MPRB became
the first and only American park agency to require, by ordinance, that its
Capital Improvement Plan use specific, transparent, data-driven measures to
ensure racial and economic equity are accounted for funding allocations in its
entire six (6) year Capital Improvements Program. For example, 33 of the first
34 parks slated for improvements as part of a new, 20-year plan to revitalize
neighborhood parks are located in racially concentrated areas of poverty. The
plan also contains $800,000 annually for accessibility improvements. With a
successful model in place, the MPRB is now using similar data-driven measures
to ensure that racial and economic equity are accounted for in funding
allocations for Recreation Centers – which is at the very heart of its service
offerings. Again, a first for park systems in the nation, the MPRB is leading
the charge for tackling structural racism and bias so that members of every
community are positively impacted.
Support for Park Police
As an independent park system, safety is a primary concern and it’s important
to recognize the community’s appreciation for the work of our Park Police
Officers and Park Agents. They are committed to developing and maintaining
positive relationships with all communities, neighborhoods and partners to
proactively improve park safety and solve crime issues. Their success in this
area was reflected in two significant ways. The Minneapolis Park Police
received the 2016 Platinum Excellence Award from the Park Law Enforcement
Association due to its partnership with recreation staff to train youth workers
to provide positive and safe park environments for youth to express their
rights during protests and gatherings and prevent bad or potentially criminal
behavior in parks and recreation centers. This work was recognized as an
especially innovative, effective crime-fighting technique. In the 2015 Citywide
Survey, which was conducted by an independent firm using statistically sound
procedures, equitably representing all races and cultures in Minneapolis. The
survey included a section
on the importance of park services. Minneapolis residents were asked to rate
the importance of 14 programs and activities currently provided by the
Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board. Providing police protection in the parks
was one of the 14 services. A high 72% rated the provision of police protection
in the parks as “very important” and another 22% rated them “somewhat
important” for a total 94%. Only 6% rated park police protection provided by
the Park Board as “not too important” or “not at all important.”
Environmental Stewardship
Finally, the MPRB also continues to make strides in its commitment to the
environment. Since 1990 the MPRB has endeavored to be mindful when using any
chemicals and has worked to minimize the amount of pesticides used on
parklands. When interventions are necessary, the approach to pesticides is
simple: use as little as possible, in as few areas as possible. To that end, it
employs a variety of cultural, mechanical, biological methods to get the job
done without the use of chemicals. For example, in 2017 it successfully tested
the use of goats as an environmentally friendly way to manage invasive species
that threaten the natural habitat.
In addition to interventions and innovations used to control pests or invasive
plant species, the MPRB does its part to encourage the growth of flowering
plants and pollinators, like bees, upon which 75% of the earth’s flowering
plants depend on. For example, it partners with the University of Minnesota Bee
lab by providing eleven selected turf grass areas that feature flowering plants
favored by wild bees.
The MPRB is proud of its accomplishments over the last several years, as well
as the strong commitment on the part of leadership, staff, volunteers and the
community. Its efforts have made the MPRB the best park in the nation five out
of the last five years from the Trust for Public Land and a National Recreation
and Park Association Gold Medal Finalist in 2016 and 2017. Even more is on the
horizon as MPRB continues to improve systems and its ability to serve all
communities.